This Ought To Be Different
by eveningspirit1
Summary: The AU postRapture story in which Starbuck is discovering her destiny, Six is learning God's will, and Lee is angsting for no reason. Also Dee and Sam serve as the background, at least for now. Oh, and Temple of Five does weird things to everybody.
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: not mine, not intended to violate anyones copyrights.

NOTE: Consider it "Rapture" AU. No spoilers as of the first chapter, only one, very mild and irrelevant, in the second paragraph. Other than that - just my crazy idea.

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THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

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The first thing she was aware of, was a hard object pressing on her side. Then she was aware of a cold surface under her cheek, and a red flashing light behind her eye lids . . . Her eyes were closed! She snapped them open, and jolted upright.

A hundred hammers went loose inside her skull. She lifted her hand to touch her temple but her palms were in gloves and bandaged, so she felt nothing, only dulling pain where the glove touched the cranium.

Then she heard a noise. A few noises: buzzing, rhythmic moaning and . . . well . . . Not so rhythmic moaning. The first one was artificial and was in sync with the red flashing light to her left. The second one came from behind a . . . behind a something. Something she found difficult to name, because it seemed to be in a position it was not supposed to be.

She tried to crawl around the thing, and see if there was someone, maybe injured, but as she peeked around the corner she met bright blue eyes of a beautiful blonde woman. That one was certainly not injured, as she smiled broadly.

"Well, how about that?" the woman asked. "Looks like we haven't made it after all."

Why was she so joyful about that? Ah! She was tied up! So she was a prisoner, she . . . Didn't want them to make it . . . Make what exactly?

A moaning reminded her about that someone she wanted to check up, so she looked around. There were two men and a woman lying in odd stances in the undersized space of that something they were in. One of the men was squeezed between two objects sparkling with electrical discharge; he was not moaning. The other had blood all over his face and arm, lay under some heavy object and, as she moved farther, she saw that his leg was bent at an unnatural angle. That must have hurt . . . The other woman – the unconscious one – was also stirring, so hopefully she was about to wake up.

"I would help you," the blonde spoke, seeing her trying to lift the heavy object from the bloodied man. "If you'd only cut those." She lifted her hands, the rope dangling down to her ankles and up to her neck.

"Umm . . . I don't think so."

"Umm, I didn't either."

"Holy frak!" the other, dark haired woman moaned finally. "Starbuck? Hades' forges, What happened?"

"Honestly? I have no idea."

"Oh" the brunette lifted her hand to her forehead, slightly dazed. Apparently there were some hammers inside her head, too. "We must have crashed . . . Careful!" she shrieked suddenly, because one of the men – the one not-so-bloodied – moved, and nearly touched the screeching cable.

"Lords of Kobol!" he exclaimed, and moved his hand away. Winced, coughed slightly and looked around. He assessed the situation in one glance – the damage, the injured colleague, and three women. "Sit-rep," he barked to the one who knew the least. The brunette also looked at her questioningly.

She gasped uncertain what they wanted.

"Starbuck, sit-rep!"

"I am sitting," she replied hesitantly.

Both – the man and the brunette – gazed at each other with alarm. The blonde behind her back chuckled slightly. But before either of them managed to say anything, the other man cried out in pain. Starbuck – she had to be Starbuck, both of them used that name – was at his side in an instant, the brunette followed suit. The man was a little slower, as he needed to drag himself from the trap he'd fallen into.

"Dee, get the med-kit" the man said to the girl, and she jumped and started dashing through some debris at the bottom of the room. "Don't move, Sam."

"If I may suggest something . . ." the blonde started, but was cut short.

"You may not," the man hissed.

"I'd say we should get out of the raptor" she finished nonetheless. "You smell the fuel? Those sparks," she nodded towards the cables, "and fuel aren't exactly the best company."

The man looked behind him, holding Sam's chest firmly, preventing him from moving. Then he gazed at the thing laying on top of his colleague.

"We gotta lift this!" he instructed. "Starbuck, give me a hand."

Starbuck crawled closer. She found the man's approach comforting – his immediate assuming of command, his knowing what to do; she had no idea what to do. She looked into his eyes – very blue eyes, she noticed – as they got ready to lift the weight. He only nodded and she obeyed his unspoken order. But just as they pushed – they backed off immediately. He started coughing and holding his side, and her thousand hammers cut loose again. She moaned clutching her head.

"You hit . . ." he coughed, "hit your head?"

"Don't know" she replied with strain.

"Can't find it" they heard a frightened voice from below.

"Great" the blonde commented with contempt.

"Shut it!" the man spat, and neared the brunette. Dee – Starbuck remembered. Her name was Dee, the moaning, bloodied man's name was Sam – he still moaned – her name was Starbuck, she didn't know the names of the blue-eyed man and the blonde. And they were in a raptor that might go 'boom' anytime.

"There" the blue-eyed man pointed at something.

"I haven't seen it" Dee whimpered.

"It's okay" he stroke her tangled dark hair and she looked up, tears shining in her eyes.

"You think they are waiting?"

"Of course. Try to get it out," he commanded and returned to Sam's side. He looked up at Starbuck. "How's your head?"

"Hurts."

"You know where we are?"

"In a raptor?" she tried.

"And a raptor is? . . ."

"Hmmm . . ."

He sighed, there was a deep worry in his blue eyes.

"Sorry to interrupt your chat," the blonde cut in again, "but if you cut these," she indicated her restraints, "I could help you. You know – lift this thing, and even carry him out. How 'bout that?"

Starbuck looked at the woman incredulously. She was probably tall, though it was hard to say when she was crumpled like this, but she seemed to be of slender posture. She would carry a man twice her weight?

But the blue-eyed gritted his teeth, neared her and cut the rope with one swift move. "Try anything and you're dead," he warned.

The blonde beamed at him, "I'm so scared."

Then she neared Sam, and lifted the heavy object as if it was a cardboard box. She kneeled beside the man and threw him over her arm. He cried again when his leg was moved.

"Careful!" Starbuck screamed.

"We'll strap this outside," the blonde instructed and turned towards the blue-eyed, who was already trying to open the hatch. It was in a wall above them, at a weird angle. The man had some problems opening it, but finally managed with brunette's help. Then they both assisted the blonde with carrying out crying Sam. Finally Starbuck joined them outside.

The first thing she noticed was that it was windy. Very windy. Then she looked at the sky, and though realizing she couldn't remember seeing any other sky, she knew it had never looked quite like this. It was obviously the night, as right above them a few stars sparkled, but they were dimmed by the bright blue fire, that seemed to burn from below the horizon all around them.

"Frak," the blonde whispered.

"Lords . . ." the blue-eyed accompanied her.

"We've got to get to the Temple," the blonde urged.

"We should try get a few things from the raptor," the man countered.

"Put me down," Sam cut in, his voice marred by pain.

"Put him down!" blue-eyed ordered.

"We gotta go" the blonde refused to comply.

"I. Said," the man started and there was no defying this time. There was an undeniable power in his posture, in his eyes, and in a gun he held towards the blonde. He didn't even have to finish; she put Sam on the ground.

"I'm not sure if you realize what the situation is," she hissed with force however, stepping so close to him, that her face hovered above his. "The sun has just gone nova. The only place we are safe, is in the Temple, but we must get there before down, or even faster. The other side of the planet is being burned as we speak, rocks are melting, the atmosphere is being blown out to the vacuum."

"If that is true, then how will we be safe anywhere on this rock?" the man asked. "We're dead already, there's nothing we can do!"

"We'll be safe in the Temple," she stressed. "Trust me. I know."

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t.b.c.?

I don't know why I'm posting this. I don't know if I will continue and for how long – blame it on my hectic schedule. But this idea has been bugging me for quite a while and it needed to be written. And there's so much more I want to explore here . . . A boooo! Sorry. Hope someone enjoyed :).


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks so very much for your comments! You make my day, guys :)

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THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Two

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"I'm not sure if you realize what the situation is," the blonde hissed with force, stepping so close to the blue-eyed man, that her face hovered above his. "The sun has just gone nova. The only place we are safe, is in the Temple, but we must get there before down, or even faster. The other side of the planet is being burned as we speak, rocks are melting, the atmosphere is being blown out to the vacuum."

"If that is true, then how will we be safe anywhere on this rock?" he asked. "We're dead already, there's nothing we can do!"

"We'll be safe in the Temple," she stressed. "Trust me. I know."

He looked at her, then looked around. And as Starbuck caught a glimpse of his eyes, she saw something like a resignation there.

"You're not planning of giving up now, are you?" she asked him, and he turned to her, the reflexes of hellish blue light in his pupils making his gaze even more fierce. "Why don't we just assume she's right?" Starbuck tried.

The tall blonde saw his hesitation, too, "I don't have the time to explain the details to you right now! We gotta _move_!" she shrieked and her voice was terrifying.

For a brief second Starbuck saw the blue-eyed compose himself internally, then he turned to the blonde, "Listen Shelly, or whatever your name is, even if the Temple may provide us shelter – although I don't see how; you said rocks were melting! – we need to have food, water and medicine. You can turn off your hunger; we cannot." He breathed heavily in and out a few times. "Now, I'm getting back into the raptor to get one of the algae containers, and you are coming down with me. You two strap his leg," he motioned towards the semi-conscious Sam, "and give him something for the pain. We'll get the stretcher."

He stepped towards the entrance and seeing that Shelly hadn't moved, glared at her. "I don't care if the raptor explodes," he hissed. "I'd rather die in a bang, than of hunger."

Not waiting any longer he descended through the hatch. Shelly followed him unenthusiastically.

Starbuck, not quite knowing how to take care of the injured, kneeled beside Sam and tried to hold his hand. It turned out to be quite difficult with her own hands bandaged, but his eyes opened and she saw recognition in them. He knew her. And he must have liked her, because he tried to smile in spite of all the pain he was in.

"Your--head--" he tried to speak, but she placed her palm on his lips.

"I'll be fine," she whispered.

She looked at the brunette, skillfully wrapping Sam's injured leg. Starbuck's first impression had been that the girl would freak out any moment. Now she seemed much more collected and even competent. But then Dee cast a swift glance at the raptor, and Starbuck realized why – it was because of the authority the blue-eyed radiated. His strength made Dee stronger. And – Starbuck had to admit it – it made her stronger, too.

Sam recoiled as Dee unbuckled his pants, slid them down exposing skin on his thigh, and thrust the needle injecting the pain-medicine.

"You'll be better in a moment," she told him, though he probably didn't take notice. Then she looked up at Starbuck. "Your hands don't hurt?"

Starbuck looked at her palms, surprised. She hadn't thought about it so far, but no, they didn't. She shook her head. She wondered if it was the brunette who bandaged them.

Dee stood up and approached the hatch just in time to help Shelly drag out the large and heavy container. Not that her effort changed anything for the unhumanly strong blonde. The blue-eyed climbed out behind them, coughing and favoring his right side. Then he pulled up water bowl and a stretcher.

He stood up and looked at their small group, heavy boxes and a limp form of his colleague. Scratched his chin, concern written all over his face.

"Okay, mister wise guy," Shelly mocked. "Now how do we take it all? Do you expect me to carry everything?"

"No," he spat. "Dee, can you lift that?" He pointed at the container.

The petite brunette made a curious face and attempted to move the box a few feet. She succeeded.

"Fine. Kara, you'll take water, Shelly and I will take Sam. Which way to the Temple?" he turned to the blonde.

"Try here" she pointed her finger at the rocks above them, and moved to place Sam on the stretcher. "And my name is not Shelly. You may call me Six."

"I don't care." He bent to help her. "And I won't call you a number." Together they transported Sam, she threw the med-kit across her back, then they lifted the stretcher. The blue-eyed gasped as his breath caught, but regained his balance. He led the way. Starbuck hesitated, but apparently he meant her when he said "Kara", so she picked the bowl, and followed the rest.

The climb wasn't easy, and strong chilling wind wasn't helping much. Starbuck came near Dee.

"Need a hand with that?" she asked seeing as the girl tried to drag it, then push it, then pull.

Dee stopped and shot her a glare. "Well, given that you are our expert on out-of-the-box thinking, maybe you have a better idea how to get this up there?" she scorned, and suddenly Starbuck thought the brunette wasn't very fond of her. "Meanwhile I'll do what I can, because apparently Lee thinks you need to be spared or something."

Starbuck gazed up at their leader and the blonde. The two had just stopped, Lee doubled over. Shelly, or Six, or whatever her name was – was saying something to him, and though they weren't ahead more than a few meters, the voice died away in the wailing of the wind. Sam started dragging himself to his feet, but the blonde put a hand on his arm and grounded him effectively. He started arguing, but she ignored him and returned to the two women.

Starbuck watched her feet with bewilderment – Shelly was wearing high heels, and walked through the chaotically dispersed rocks on a steep slope, as if it was a cat-walk.

"What?" the woman asked, catching Starbuck's gaze. "The only shoes in my size they had on the basestar were high heels! You think I like it?" she snorted, trying to restrain her platinum-blonde hair that flailed wildly around her face.

Starbuck said nothing to that, and Shelly came up to Dee. "Give me that," she wrenched the container from the smaller woman's grasp. "You go, take care of your husbands!" She turned away and started climbing again.

Starbuck looked up at the two men, suddenly frightened. _Your husbands_, Shelly said, one of them was her husband! And she wondered which. Trying to cover her uneasiness, she decided to simply follow Dee. So when the brunette stopped near Sam, who was trying to get up, Starbuck strode ahead towards Lee.

"You're sure you're up to it?" she heard Dee's concerned question as the girl helped Sam stand.

"It doesn't hurt," he replied weakly, and accepted her arm. When Starbuck passed them – nearing Lee, swallowing hard – Sam whispered, "You sure about that? Guess, she's stronger, if nothing else--"

Dee replied in a whisper too, "She seems to have a concussion. Probably--" The rest of her words faded away in the wind.

Starbuck stopped next to the blue-eyed. Now she felt guilty of not remembering him. He looked up, and wheezed, "I'm 'kay".

She helped him stand straighter, and attempted to support him, while he walked, but he brushed her off.

"Don't. You have--" he lost breath again.

"A concussion, I know."

"You shouldn't strain--" he didn't finish again, but she understood.

"I won't," she promised. And just to ease his worry for her, added, "Besides I'm really not feeling bad at all. Other than . . . memory loss that is."

He nodded, smiling, and gathered his strength, to speak again, "That's because Dee--gave you pain meds--for your hands--" he struggled. Unnecessarily, she'd figured that out already. "If you start getting--nauseous--or something--let us know--okay?"

"Sure," she confirmed. "You seem pretty banged up, too," tried to divert his attention.

"I'm fine," he said again, and fell silent, apparently realizing that talking and walking, while he could barely breathe, was too difficult.

The wind was so strong, Starbuck too had problems taking a breath sometimes, and he was clutching his side, his step uneven. Probably had some broken ribs. He stumbled and leaned on a rock.

"You feel that?" he asked, suddenly alarmed.

"Feel what?" She placed her palm next to his. And even through thick layers of a glove and bandages she felt trembling. Then she felt it under her feet, too. The ground was trembling. Not shaking, rocks weren't falling, or being rearranged, it was just this constant faint vibration.

She looked at him, at the burning sky . . .

Shelly was up on the top of the slope, she came from behind the rocky formation, her fair hair whirling in the wind, making a bluish halo around her dangerously beautiful face. She held them back, casting her companions a glance then shook her head and walked down with determination.

"I can't understand why I'm helping you," she snorted passing Starbuck and Lee.

"I can't either" Lee breathed out, though she couldn't hear his whisper. She came to Sam and Dee supporting him, and placed herself under his other arm.

Dee and Sam were an odd couple to Starbuck's tastes. She was so tiny, and he so tall. But still they looked well together. Sighing she turned back to Lee, who was supposed to be her husband. She wished she remembered anything.

The ground was constantly shuddering while they slowly ascended towards the mysterious Temple.

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t.b.c.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks so much for your reviews. I'm gonna fly!

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THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Three.

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Lee was slowing down with each step. Soon Shelly, Sam and Dee passed them – the blonde nearly dragging the man, and Dee supporting him enough, so he wouldn't injure his leg any more. She turned to glare at the twosome, but continued to climb without a word.

Kara cast a glance at her companion. He dragged one foot after another, his mouth gaping, muscles strained, holding a hand to his chest. She felt compelled to help him, but he'd rebuff her, she knew that. So she kept him company, that was all she could do.

They reached the top of the hill finally, and with final effort Lee dragged himself to the horizontal plateau in front of the crag. There was an opening in this crag, a dark tunnel.

But Lee looked the opposite direction, and Starbuck followed his gaze.

The scenery was surreal. Hills, the terrain, bushes, stones, ground, everything was immersed in this bright sapphire light. The sky at the horizon was so dazzling it was impossible to look upon, the blue fire soared toward zenith. There were no stars anymore, no blackness even, as if the night ended. But they couldn't have walked for longer than an hour! A half an hour. Starbuck wasn't certain of her sense of time.

Down in the opening between two slopes, sea waters were heating up, vaporizing, the mist ascending, clinging to the ground with white milky feelers.

Suddenly somewhere to their left the ground broke, and a fountain of bright orange melted rocks sprung toward the sky.

"We're not gonna survive this." Kara barely heard her companion's whisper through the wind and roar of the destroyed planet.

She swirled to face him. "We are! Shelly said--" She gestured toward the opening in the rocks, where their three friends had just disappeared.

Lee only shook his head, to exhausted to argue. She held his face up, between her palms, and looked deep into his blue eyes. Maybe she didn't remember him, or love him, but she wasn't going to let him give up.

"Listen, maybe we're not going to survive, but we'll get in there right now, and if we die, we die trying to make it out of here alive. Okay?"

He gazed at her, startled. His lips moved, forming words that did not come out, "I--d--"

"You want to make it out of here alive, don't you?"

"I do."

Just before they moved, Dee came running back. "Are you co--" she screamed and stopped at the sight of the two of them. "--ming?" she completed her sentence, glancing at Kara, then at Lee, then back at Kara. Then she turned around and let them follow her inside.

Lee strived to catch up with her, Kara saw him place a hand on her back, she shrugged it off, he bent to whisper something into her ear. She turned around.

"I just don't know anymore," she whispered looking up at him, her eyes teary. "where I stand."

"Come on!" Shelly screamed in her high-pitched intense voice. "I'm closing these door. Do you want to end up on this side, or that?"

They hurried, then they helped Shelly close and secure the door. Once she was sure they were sheltered, she walked toward the middle of the room.

Kara looked around. The cave they were in was astounding. Really huge, really high. She felt like a worthless atom of dust in the face of the Powers. There was a gigantic column in the middle of the room – Shelly strode toward it – surrounded by five chamfered pentagonal pillars. All around the floor there lay scattered pieces of some equipment, apparently left by someone in haste. Sam sat propped against a box a few meters form the entrance – whether it was their own algae container or some other item Kara couldn't tell, and didn't bother really.

She looked back at the column. In the bluish light coming from some kind of reflectors, she noticed a shape, a motif that seemed familiar. The first thing, that she found recognizable since her memory loss – something round, a yellow, green and red rings, surrounded by flames, rotating flames.

The image made her dizzy and she staggered.

"Kara!" she heard a voice.

"What is she-- doing?" she heard a strained question, when her balance returned.

It was Lee, and he was trying to follow Shelly, but his knees gave way, and he swayed, his weight falling on Kara. She caught him instinctively, Dee grasping his other arm.

"Lee!" she screamed.

"Gotta--" he struggled to say, he struggled to get up, but a coughing fit stopped him. When it passed, he held Dee's arm. "Go--" he gasped. "Watch her--"

Dee cast a terrified glance at the blonde, standing in front of the large column. Then she looked back at Lee, but he went limp in Starbuck's arms, his eyes rolling back. Dee gazed up at the other woman.

"Go!" Kara urged. If that was what he ordered, it had to be the right move, he knew what was going on. She had no idea. No frakking idea!

She was distressed, she realized, looking after the slender brunette, who run toward the center of the room. It was Dee who knew how to take care of the injured, not her!

"Put him down," she heard a voice next to her. Sam. He crawled to them, dragging the med-kit along.

Kara gently put Lee's lifeless form on the floor.

"He got hit, when we were searching for you. The jacket may have saved his life, but it was a close range," Sam informed her, while removing Lee's cloths. The unconscious man's face contorted in pain. "Then we had a close encounter with Six-- Shelly-- Whatever." He looked over at the tall blonde and tiny brunette pacing around the column and pillars, searching for something. Kara could easily tell he longed to be there, he was a man of action; sitting behind, trapped, was making him anxious.

"Give me a hand will you," he requested, annoyed, as she sat unmoving next to him. Kara held Lee, while Sam took off the jacket. "Then we crashed. I wouldn't be surprised if he had a few broken ribs."

This most certainly wasn't the first time Kara was undressing Lee, but it still made her feel uncomfortable. She didn't remember the body under those tank-tops, muscled arms however were enough to make her heart beat faster. Sam handed her scissors to cut Lee's wear and she took a deep breath before she put them to the fabric. She cut through and uncovered the left, uninjured half of his body. She wondered why? Was she curious how he looked? She was rewarded with a godly sight of well sculpted muscles, tanned skin, a few manly hairs.

Before the urge to caress this body took over, Sam removed the material from the right side of his chest, and . . . Starbuck had to retreat when sickness punched her right between the eyes with the sight of purple and violet bruises.

She jumped away and heaved, ignoring Sam's concerned "Kara?" She waved him off, hoping he'd first take care of Lee. She was fine. Wasn't she? Nausea passed, but she was still dizzy. The air in the room was getting more and more blue.

Kara looked up at the column. At the very top of it she noticed bright blue crystals – five of them. And though their light was intense, she was able to make out their shape – they were obviously resembling five stony pillars below. A ray of vibrant blue light shone straight up from each of those crystals toward the same five crystals hanging in the seal of the dome.

Kara blinked. The rays were getting shorter as crystals from the top of the column and those from the dome were nearing one another.

The air was tainted red.

Kara held her breath, searching for the source of the new color, and saw – right above the five reflectors attached to the column – some kind of ribbed apparatus, that was turning red, as if heating up. Red turned to orange, orange to yellow, yellow to white . . .

Time stopped, Kara felt herself getting heavy, too heavy, too large, too long, too long . . .

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t.b.c.


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you all for your wonderful reviews. I'm sorry I'm not responding to all of them personally - I usually enjoy that very much :) - but this time I decided it's better to just keep writing the story. Hope this is a good choice ;).

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THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Four.

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Red turned to orange, orange to yellow, yellow to white . . .

Time stopped, Kara felt herself getting heavy, too heavy, too large, too long. Too long . . .

And then time moved again and everything returned to normal.

Except that all the illumination from the reflectors vanished, and the only source of light were three lamps laying on the floor of the Temple.

"We jumped--" Sam breathed out. "Can you believe that? We jumped away from the planet!"

Kara turned to him and gazed incredulously. Did that mean they were safe?

"How are you feeling?" he asked, concerned. She could barely make out his face in the dim light.

"Just dizzy."

"We need to take a look at that head of yours. Can you get some light over here?"

She got up obediently, fighting another wave of nausea, and strode to the nearest lamp. Picked it up and came to sit next to Sam. He took a cloth and started cleaning up the wound on her forehead. It itched a little.

"What about your leg?" she asked. "Dee only strapped it, didn't set it."

He cleared his throat, "I know. We'll get to it."

She noticed him casting a glance at the column, now barely visible, and two figures standing next to it. They were talking fervently in risen voices, obviously arguing, but were too far for the words to be heard.

"What do you think happened?" Sam asked. "What did she do?"

"I have no idea," Kara replied and looked up where the crystals and the dome were. There was nothing but a dark void now, but she could swear the crystals glimmered a little, catching any light they could from even the tiniest sources.

Sam followed her gaze. "What?"

"Didn't you see it?"

"I was taking care of the Major. What happened?"

Kara hesitated. She wanted to tell Sam, but she looked at the still form lying next to them. "How is he?"

Sam sighed. "I dunno, there are no cuts, no signs of impending infection. I'm not a doctor, and even if I were, I don't have all the gear, I can't tell if his lungs are intact or not. Guess we'll have to wait and see." He leaned to listen to the breaths of the injured man, that were so shallow now, they were barely perceptible.

Kara watched this with complete lack of involvement. Gods, the man she was supposed to love could die, and she didn't . . .

". . . really care."

"What?" Sam gasped.

She flinched. Had no idea she spoke any of this aloud. "Nothing, I-- I know this may sound strange, but-- I don't really love him now--"

"Don't--" Sam cut in with an odd look in his eyes. "I don't-- I don't wanna know." He shook his head. "Sorry I asked." Returned to dabbing her forehead. She could see his face from so close now, his jaw working, lips tightly shut. He despised her.

"Listen, Sam, this is--" she started to explain, she didn't want to be misunderstood! She only didn't remember, nothing more . . .

But he didn't let her, "Stop! Please." He looked at her, his dark pupils full of hurt. "I don't know you any more. What? You mess around with the man, but when he's dying you just detach yourself from him? Are you so afraid of losing someone, that you think it's better to cut off any feelings you have? Or have you really never felt anything? What if it was me, lying here, dying, would you--" he stopped suddenly, and turned to the med-kit, searching for a dressing. "I know you wouldn't, why am I even asking?" he murmured.

Found what he was searching for, taped to her forehead, not saying anything more, nor looking her in the eyes.

And she started to think it was all much more complicated than she initially believed. Dee seemed taken aback seeing the two of them together outside the Temple, now Sam asked weird questions. What was really going on?

She was tired, and a sound of pointed firm footsteps saved her from pondering on all of this.

Shelly approached them, with Dee right at her heels. The tall woman looked at Lee's still form, shook her head, sighed, then gazed at a very confused Starbuck, at Sam, and her face reflected pure irritation.

"Alright," she sighed once more. "I'll tell you what I know." Stood straight, her hands folded behind her back, chin risen proudly, gazing at them intensely, her face an impenetrable mask. "As you may be aware of, the Scriptures were written in a language that allows different interpretations. One of those interpretations is that it was built as a shelter for the five priests-- or five prophets-- So when I realized that we've crashed practically at the feet of the Temple, that we were in a grave danger, thus in a desperate need of a shelter, and that there were five of us-- I thought it was too much to be a coincidence. It seemed wise to take that chance." She stopped and took a deep breath, but remained silent for a few heart bits, deciding how much more she was going to reveal.

"When we entered the Temple," she picked up when no one helped her make up her mind, "I was trying to figure out what we were supposed to do, so the Temple would really give us shelter. But I didn't do anything." She turned to Dee. "That's right." Turned back to Sam and Kara. "I don't know what activated the Temple, and what triggered the jump. That's all."

"Wow!" said Sam.

"Yeah--" sighed Kara.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Sam.

"I know what I'll do," replied Kara. "I'll go get some sleep."

She really was exhausted, her mind foggier and foggier. She needed rest, so she curled up on the floor, but before she knew it, both Sam and Dee were on her.

"No, you can't!"

"You have a concussion!"

Frak!

"So?" she whimpered. "I can't even rest, when I'm tired?"

"Well, no," Dee forced her back to a sitting position. "You cannot sleep, even if you're tired." She gazed around. "I think I know what we should do now. We'll take care of all those injuries."

She checked the bandage on Kara's head, than evaluated Lee, still lying motionless on the floor, then again Kara – her hands – and finally looked at Sam's leg.

"He's out cold," Sam voiced her thoughts, nodding toward Lee. "Won't move, won't hurt himself any more than he's already hurt."

"That leaves you for the starters," Dee replied with a half-smile. "Six, I'll need a hand, could use your help too, Starbuck."

The three women gathered around Sam, Six to hold him, Kara to help, but more to keep herself occupied than really be of any assistance. Dee started removing the bandage and splint.

Sam gritted his teeth; every movement caused pain. "This thing you gave me-- wasn't morpha?"

"Nope. We only have one left, thought I'd save it for a special occasion."

She cut his pants and exposed twisted, bruised knee-joint. Nudged it lightly, and moved her hands to grip his ankle. "Ready?" As he slightly nodded she pulled with all her strength.

His dreadful scream echoed through the vast space of the Temple.

And even though he fought a little against Six's strong arms, a moment later he passed out. Dee felt his knee-joint snap into place. She exhaled, "Good." Turned around to pick up the splint, and put it back in place. "Now we gotta asses that concussion of yours, Starbuck," she talked, while strapping up. "Have some memory loss, don't you?"

"Total."

"Total?"

"I have no idea who I am," Kara explained impatiently. She thought she'd talked about it with someone already. "Or who you are. Or her--" She looked at Shelly, still sitting next to her. Behind the blonde she spotted the huge column again. And the round swirling shape. "I only remember one thing--" she whispered.

"Wait a minute!" Dee snapped suddenly, and stopped ministering to Sam's knee. Turned around and in a blink of an eye was at Lee's side.

"What do you remember?" asked Shelly, as Kara still sat transfixed, staring at the barely visible column and seeing the whirlpool of gold, green and red, surrounded by golden rays. Rotating, rotating faster.

"I'm not sure," Kara replied in a whisper. "But I've seen that symbol already."

"That round symbol?"

Kara stood up, swaying slightly. Shelly was at her side in an instant, supported her. Together they walked to the column.

"Where did you see it?"

"I have no idea."

"How could you have seen it?"

They stopped, and Kara traced the relief lightly, with awe.

"I think I painted it," she whispered.

She was no longer aware of the woman standing next to her, staring at her in astonishment. She was not aware of the darkened Temple, and presence of other people anywhere near, or empty space outside, or the fate or purpose of the ancient artifact.

She was dragged by the whirlpool, dragged into the spinning entity, deeper and deeper, and deeper . . .

---

Six caught her falling. Mesmerized by the implications of everything that happened that day, the cylon thought for the first time that she had been wrong all along. She had been so certain she'd known what was her place in God's Plan. Then again she ignored this one – Starbuck – when the woman was nearly forcing herself into the pattern. Damn, she was jealous of Baltar's affection for the pilot! While she should have supported it. Or perhaps not? Perhaps it was God's plan to get them into this place this way?

She couldn't hear God's voice any longer.

---

t.b.c.


	5. Chapter 5

The delay with this chapter was caused by the fact, that I had really hard time writing Six in this. But I dare hope that she came out fairly well after seventh rewrite ;).

On the other hand, lots of material was left on the cutting room floor (or whatever it's called), but unlike on the filmed show, I can recycle it, and use in chapter Six. So I can basically say, that chap 6 is nearly written. Happy reading, thanks for comments, keep commenting, and I go back to writing. Luv!

---

THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Five.

---

This was a long day for everyone, but for this Six it was a day that changed everything. Earlier this morning she'd been nothing more than a vision in Gaius Baltar's mind. Now she had a body that obeyed her will and her will only.

Earlier this morning God's plan had been laid in a clear path ahead of her, now all she had was confusion.

She stared at the woman standing next to her, entranced, stroking the golden, green and red circles. "We're here," Kara whispered, touching the golden sun-rays.

Shelly, startled, looked over at the spacious hall, and other humans cuddled in the dark.

---

The day was long for them, too. For Lieutenant Dualla it started with disappointment, when she'd seen her husband rushing to greet the unruly pilot he was in love with. Then everything had gone downhill. Cylons had cut them off Galactica. Starbuck had crashed, and, of course, Lee had sent his wife to save his lover. Then Starbuck had been in too much pain for Dee to loatheher. Then Dee had realized she'd have to fly them both out of there, but at the same moment Lee and Anders had came out of nowhere, dragging a tied up cylon, model Shelly Godfrey, with them. Despite Lee's efforts, their raptor hadn't flown more than few hundred yards, when it'd crashed into the mountain side, resulting in everybody, except Dee and the cylon, getting hurt.

And now, instead of hating and reproaching her husband, Dee crouched beside him and whispered soothing words.

Anders' scream must have woken him up, because he looked around frightened and confused.

"What--happen--" he breathed out, his hand clutching his chest.

"Shh, it's okay. You're hurt, you have some broken ribs, that's why you can't breathe--"

"No--" he shook his head feebly. "Not that--cylon--where?--what's she doin?--"

"She's--" Dee looked up just in time to see Six and Starbuck get up and walk to the column. "She's right here."

"Watch her--Learn--Can't let'er--"

"No. It's okay." Dee grasped his hand in an attempt to be reassuring, but giving the vibe of desperation rather than reliability. "She doesn't know anything. She's just as confused as we are."

"So?--" his eyes finally focused on the woman next to him. "How's she goin' to--the Temple--save us. How?"

"Oh. We're safe. We jumped away from the planet."

Lee blinked, not wasting precious breath on asking how the frak was that possible. His expression said enough.

"The Temple," Dee tried to explain. "It's some kind of a star-ship. And when we entered it spun up FTL and . . ." She spread her arms. "Shelly didn't do anything, I saw it. I was there."

"Where are we?"

To that Dee could only nod and say, "That's a good question."

Lee was lucid enough to finally take in his surroundings. He looked at the tall obelisk towering above the round room. He looked at it's base . . . just in time to catch the sight of Kara falling into the cylon's arms.

"Kara!" he wheezed, his first impulse to leap up. But his body refused; soaring pain shot through his chest, and he collapsed on his side, gasping for breath.

"Stay down, Lee. Stay down!" Dee desperately tried to hold him still.

At the same time, she desperately wanted to run and save Starbuck from the cylon's hands.

That was the moment Sam chose to wake up from his pain-inducted coma, and groan.

Dee shot a glance at him, "Stay down, Sam!"

Then she looked back at Lee; eyes tightly shut, mouth wide open, struggling to remain conscious, but inevitably slipping into oblivion.

Then she gazed at Kara. Shelly already got up, carrying motionless body in her arms, and walked back to the humans.

"What happened?" Dee run to her.

"She collapsed--" Six hesitated. She was aware that those people were crucial to her survival, Starbuck most of all. But she'd told them enough already to gain their trust. Proof enough that she was still running free. "I did nothing, we just walked over to the column, and there she collapsed."

"Put her down."

Kara was breathing, and her heartbeat was steady, she was only unconscious. Only, but more than enough. Dee didn't think she'd be able to do anything for the pilot at that moment.

She run back to Sam.

"Don't move, I need to splint that leg of yours, finally."

"What's wrong with Kara?" his voice was thick from worry and pain. He needed to be there, at Kara's side. But he couldn't move.

Dee injected him with another dose of pain medication – not morpha, though – and sighed. Tried to explain the situation as best as she could, "Kara has a concussion. And she lost consciousness."

"In other words it's bad?" Sam was sure the slender brunette wouldn't be able to look him in the eyes.

She did, though. Stopped bandaging his knee, and looked straight at him. "Chances are she'll wake up," she stated. "But she may not."

He nodded. She nodded too, and returned to her job.

Then she requested his assistance in bandaging Lee's broken ribs. Then, very carefully, she removed Kara's flight-suit and took care of her burned fingers.

Finally she looked at the only two conscious people in the room. One was an enemy, whom she could not trust; the other was not even military, was immobilized and not really of any help as he only had eyes for unconscious Starbuck.

"We should try to decipher the symbols on the column," the cylon said.

Dee spun to look at her. "The symbols?"

"You have any better idea?" Shelly mocked. "Maybe you're going to entertain yourself with staring at the ceiling and listening to his breath?"

"No!" Dee spat through clenched teeth and got up. "I'm going to look over the stores left by Tyrol and his gang." She rushed to gather the containers, boxes and lamps in one place, attempting to sort them.

"Whenever you get bored with that, I could use your help," the cylon smiled broadly, and walked in another direction. She snagged one of the lamps, but Dee grabbed it, too.

"We must preserve the energy," she hissed. She was so edgy, she thought she might jump the cylon and hit her.

"Oh, really?" Shelly jerk the lamp from the Lieutenant's grasp with ease. "You think you'll live longer than those lamps will shine? If you don't help me with those writings, you'll rot away in here."

"I thought with that digital brain of yours, you'd crack it in no-time!"

Shelly cocked her head to the side, her eyes sparkling dangerously, and curiously all the same. "I will decipher it. But if you don't help me, you'll regret it."

"You're threatening me?"

"No. I'm stating a fact."

When Shelly walked away – so tall and dignified in her slim black dress and high heels – Dee kept looking at her for a moment. Until she heard Sam clear his throat.

"What?"

"Maybe she's . . . Right? You know? Maybe that writing contains some instructions on, I dunno, how to operate this ship? Tyrol tried to translate it too, maybe he left some notes?"

"That's right," Dee replied coldly. "I was going to take a look at Tyrol's stuff."

But she wasn't going to look for any translations. She didn't know what she was going to look for. Probably the cylon was right; they weren't going to survive. The Temple had given them shelter, helped them escape, but what now?

Dee catalogued their resources; they had unprocessed algae stock for five days, with Tyrol's field-stove as the only means to process it . They had processed algae left by the crew as well, but that wouldn't last longer than a day. Water supplies would run out in three days, maybe five if they were careful; algae contained lots of water, so that gave them a head start – if they could say that under the circumstances. Three blankets, three lamps, four shots of morpha – bless Tyrol for leaving a med-kit behind – ten shots of lighter pain-meds, and other medications, that Dee assumed wouldn't be necessary. Or so she hoped. They also had guns and plenty of ammo . . .

She wasn't pessimistic, or at least she tried not to be. But she was in a position she wasn't trained for – as the one responsible for the safety of everyone else. Yes, she had been given the Lieutenant pins, and had undergone training onboard Pegasus. She was still a junior officer, though, she was still very young and inexperienced.

She looked back at Lee, willing him to get well suddenly. Met Sam's anguished eyes.

Lieutenant Dualla knew, that she was the only one who could take care of her companions.

Not knowing what else to do, she returned to them with blankets. The ground wasn't cold, it still bore the heat of exploding nova, but it couldn't be comfortable lying on the hard floor. She wrapped Starbuck in one of the blankets.

"I need to give the other two to Lee." She looked at Sam apologetically. "He should be in half-sitting position, it would ease his breathing."

"Hey, I had pneumonia. I know what you're talking about."

Lee woke up when Sam lifted him, so Dee could fix his makeshift bed.

"Get--the cylon--" he choked out.

"It's okay, Lee," Dee whispered.

"Can't--trust her."

"I know."

"Dee, I'm serious." He looked at her intently, hoping that his eyes said, what his voice failed to say. That he wanted them to prevent the enemy from harming anyone. That he thought it would be the best if Shelly was tied up, knocked out, or even killed.

But Dee didn't get it. "Lay down, Lee. I'll take care of everything."

She understood how he felt. Out of place, just like her. Feeling the need to control the situation, but not even aware of most of the things that happened.

"Just rest, Lee," she whispered, stroking his damp forehead, but he was already asleep. "Just rest."

She inhaled and exhaled deeply. The cylon. The damn cylon seemed to at least have a vague idea about what to do. And had saved their lives so far. Dee decided she had not choice, but to follow Shelly's suggestions.

But first there was one more thing she needed to do, and it kept reminding about itself with a stinging pressure in the bottom of her bowels, for quite some time now. "We have to--" She looked around, disgusted and angry with her human physiology. "Frak!" she cursed.

Sam looked up, with an odd look in his eyes. "I'm afraid I can't be of assistance," he said and Dee wasn't sure if he was joking, or was completely somber.

"I'll figure out something!" She got up abruptly. "And then I'll get to those mysterious writings of hers." She strode to the other – dark – side of the hall, grabbing one of the empty containers on her way.

---

t.b.c.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks to Laurie31 for her input concerning all the medical issues, and for all the input ;)

And thanks for all the coments.

---

THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Six.

---

Shelly instructed Dee to count all the symbols. How many of them there were, and how many times each was repeated.

"What for?" asked Sam, when Dualla told him what she and the cylon were doing.

"She says this way we'll decode the writing."

"How?"

"I don't know--"

"Just doing what you're told? Without questioning?"

Dee's eyes flickered with anger, and dimmed. That was the military training, that was what she fell into. But she was taking instructions from the enemy and it took the ex-pyramid player to open her eyes! He was also the leader of Caprica and New Caprica Resistance, if that could work as her excuse. He had command experience.

"I'll get her here," she whispered getting up.

Shelly complied with the Lieutenant's order to join the humans, even though she considered it a waste of time.

"If we know how many symbols there are," she explained making an effort to remain patient, "and how many times each of them is repeated, we'll be able to tell whether they are letters, syllables, or whole words. I suspect they are letters, and if I'm right, knowing their number will allow us to tell which are vowels, and which are consonants."

"And this helps us how?" Sam inquired.

Shelly sighed with annoyance. "If we know that, we'll be one step closer to deciphering the writing."

"How, Shelly?" They looked at each other, and the cylon knew she had to give them something. They weren't really threatening her, she could show them who had full colors in this game and ignore their request, but there was no point.

"It is said, that in the original written language of the Scriptures, there are no vowels. This," she pointed at the column, "may be written in this language."

"So how did they speak it?" Sam asked incredulously. He had hard time imagining such a tongue-breaker.

"IWritten/I language. There were of course vowels in spoken language. That meant that you might read a word one way or another; it would have different meaning, depending on which vowel you used. That's why whatever translation or transcription you've ever read, may be essentially wrong."

"I've never read Scriptures," Sam admitted. Dee shook her head confirming that it never crossed her mind either, to indulge herself in all that religious mumbo-jumbo.

"Kara is the religious one," Sam whispered, looking at his wife with grief.

The cylon gazed at the unconscious woman with wonder once more. How little she had known! How oblivious she had been!

The God's messenger had been at a hand's reach from the start, and she'd pushed Gaius away from the woman.

Gaius.

How dead was he now? Completely dead? Five had said something about rubbish in her data as she'd downloaded. They'd cleared it away, and stored for further study. Had that been his conscience? She'd been shocked when--after Anders had shot Baltar--she'd woken up in the goo. She'd been even more shocked, when Five had asked her--all concerned and suspicious--if she'd been Caprica. Well, she hadn't been, but she hadn't admitted that. She'd insisted she had to go back ("Back? But you weren't there!") to the planet, she'd stolen the raptor the basestar held in her tenure, and, undetected, returned to the surface. Where she'd fallen straight into Anders' and Adama's hands.

"Do you know--" They heard a faint whisper, followed by a slight cough. " You know this language?"

Major Adama was conscious again, and had listened to their conversation for a while.

Shelly looked at him. She could lie that she knew it, but the truth was the tribe of Gemonese extremists--the last ones who still used this language, and who claimed to be the legatees of Pythia herself--were such a secluded society, that it was impossible for the cylon to infiltrate them. She weighed the odds. Tell him the truth, and expose her deficiency, or not tell it, and have it revealed sooner or later. He did not trust her, so maybe she could gain more by being honest.

"I know the Scriptures. I know some ancient languages. I can fit the pieces."

"Tyrol tried to--" he reminded, but she shook her head; Dee had already given her some scattered notes left by the Chief.

"Tyrol started from the rear end," she sighed with exasperation. "Although he had some knowledge." He was Gemonese after all, that's why the cylon were interested in him. She shook the thought off. "We may use some of it later. Now I'd recommend we started working." She gazed sharply at Dualla.

"I'll be with you in a moment." Dee wanted to speak with her husband first. Her husband and senior officer--whom did she need to talk to more? She leaned to him, "How are you feeling?"

Lee didn't bother answering; gave her a meaningful look instead.

"You need anything?"

"To pee."

At least she thought about that.

---

Nearly forty eight hours after their crash – Garner's watch that Lee was wearing, survived intact, whatever good or bad purpose that served – they weren't a step closer to solving the mystery.

Walking slowly from the "head" that Dee made on the other side of the hall, with the silent cylon half a step behind him, Lee took the time to consider his companions. Sam still sat by Kara's side, engrossed in sheets of paper, casting a glance at his wife every now and then, more and more frustrated and angry.

Dee was copying fragments of the writings, and left them with both immobilized men to stare at, and count the symbols. Fruitless job. Now she stood near one of the pillars, her hands hanging limply, head cocked to the side. Her hair was tangled and gray from the dirt. All five of them were filthy.

Six – she insisted on them calling her Six, not Shelly – walked by Lee's side, supporting him, when his step staggered. The first time it had been his wife helping him walk, but she'd failed to support his weight when he'd fainted, and the next time she'd asked the cylon to do the job. Shelly was strong, but also rough, and had caused him a lot of pain that first time, despite the medication he'd been given.

She had changed her manners though.

"Ready?" she asked softly, when they approached his rack. Getting up and lying down were the hardest parts of the trip.

He took a breath – as deep as bandages and broken ribs allowed. Something rattled there in his chest, and he coughed painfully. Six's palms were on his arms, steadying him. The spasm passed quickly.

"Ready," he whispered.

She placed her hand under his left arm, much gentler on the right side, and supported his weight as they descended together. He leaned on the cylon's arm with total trust. Shook his head at the thought, and Shelly stopped and looked at him warily. "It's 'kay," he responded to her concern.

Breathed with relief when his back finally touched the folded blanket, and Six carefully covered him with the other one, not upsetting the painful site on his right.

Then she turned to look at the floor, where they made a board to count all the symbols.

"Twenty two," she sighed. "Looks to be the final number, just like I thought."

Sam snorted and threw a paper at her. "Twenty nine, if you count all the variations as different symbol."

"Those dots and strokes are too little differences to count them as meaningful."

"What it means?" Lee dared a short question, breath in, breath out. "Twenty two?"

"It means no vowels," Six reminded.

"Unless those dots and strokes are, say, vowels," Sum cut in stubbornly.

The cylon shot him a furious glance; his endless contradictions were irritating.

"C'mon Shelly!" he bawled, knowing she intended to ignore him. "You're fitting the pieces so they would suit your idea. Open your robotic mind a little! If you can."

Shelly turned to him. Her blue eyes shone like the nova burning the sky. She took a step toward him. Another step. The sound of her high heels hitting the stony floor reverberated in the spacious hall. Another step. She crouched beside him and cocked her head to the side. A devious smile spread on her lips, and Sam held his breath, when her face was only inches from his.

"You can't even imagine how my brain works," she whispered. She observed the emotions swirling in his pupils – was it fear? anger? frustration? – for a few more seconds, and then got up and walked away without another word.

Lee gazed at his colleague, not saying anything either. Sam noticed his look and blew up.

"Do you trust her?"

"No." Lee was too tired to explain that his gaze meant support, not opposition.

"Then don't look at me like that!"

"I'm not." He breathed heavily. "I'm with you."

As much as he could be. And not even due to his own weakness, but because of Sam's increasing anger. Lee was too tired to be angry, while Sam felt fit, apart from pain and feeling of uselessness.

The taller man dragged himself up, leaning on a crutch he constructed from a lamp-stand. At least he could get up on his own; he could walk on his own to serve his body's intimate needs. Lee shut his eyes firmly to stop tears from running. Listened to Sam's limping and cursing. They had just run out of pain meds, and the last shots were wearing off. Dee stored two shots of morpha, said they might need it yet. Shelly could take her time to solve the mystery, she was a cylon. But the humans didn't have the luxury of too much time on their hands.

Lee sobbed lightly, when Sam was far enough away. This wasn't wise though, given the state of his lungs. A painful fit of coughing rattled through his chest, tearing the healing bones apart, burning deep inside. He coughed and coughed and thought that this time he would never stop. Where was Dee, why didn't she hear it?

When the spasm finally passed, and he felt about to pass out, he heard a soft moan next to him. Turned his head abruptly and held his breath, when he felt another coughing fit rising. Looked at the limp hand rising slowly to the forehead of the woman lying next to him.

"Kara?" he croaked, trying not to breathe.

"Frak, Apollo," her voice sounded dry like sandpaper. "What was I drinking last night? I have a hangover of the century."

---

t.b.c.

Reviews are making writing fanfics funnier ;)


	7. Chapter 7

Hmmm... Thanks for a review!  
I hope there is more than one person still reading this? ;)

---  
THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT  
Chapter Seven  
---

"Frak, Apollo, what was I drinking last night?"

Lee willed himself to stay conscious. Kara was awake. And not only that, she said his name!

"What's with my hands?" she gazed at her palms, covered with greasy salve; Dee decided that since the pilot wasn't moving, her burns would heal better if not bandaged. Now that changed of course. Luckily the damage wasn't as bad as they first suspected.

"Don't touch--" Lee warned, but another coughing fit stopped him.

"Hey," he heard a voice right next to his ear. Saw her face hovering above him, though his vision was clouded by pain. "Lords, my head . . . " she mumbled. "Do you have any idea, why?--No, don't talk! I'll figure it out. Where the frak are we?" Kara finally looked around.

Lee concentrated on evening out his breathing. Short gasps – in and out, in and out. He was getting better, he knew he was. Earlier this morning – or what they decided to call morning – he'd been awake for nearly four hours straight, the longest since the crash. He'd been taking active part in Shelly's research, arguing with Sam, begging Dee to stop making funny comments, because he couldn't laugh. He was getting better, this cough was simply a result of the walk to the far side of the hall, nothing more.

"Is that?--" Kara asked, and then called louder, "Hey! . . . Frak, my head." Turned back to Lee, before anyone reacted. "That's Sam, right? Don't answer." She squinted and puffed out a mouthful of air as if it could relieve some of the pain.

"Kara!" Sam noticed her. He sped up, wanted to run to her right away, but his scream alarmed Dee and the cylon, and of course the petite woman was first at Kara's side, Sam's limping stride far to slow to reach them sooner.

"You're awake!" the brunette screamed, overjoyed. She lost hope that anything good would happen yet. Kneeled next to Kara, held her head in her hands and looked deep in the other woman's eyes. "Look at my finger." Moved her finger from left to right and back and Kara's gaze followed, but then the pilot snapped up.

"You know what you're doing?"

"Not really. But Cottle did that when I hit my head, so I thought it fit. How are you feeling?"

"I hit my head?"

"What do you remember?"

Too many questions all at once.

"I remember . . . " Kara hesitated. Looked at all the unfamiliar faces, at three pairs of strange eyes staring at her intently. She knew she'd met them already, she knew their names. And she knew one more thing. "I remember apple . . . Apollo."

"Right," Sam snorted.

Dee only set her jaw and looked away.

Their behavior meant something, but what?

"Apollo, the God?" Shelly asked, to the surprise of everybody.

"Yes," Kara responded. "Who else?"

"Why?"

Kara shook her head feebly. "Listen, I'm a little confused, I have a headache. Could we leave this interrogation for later?"

"Sure," Dee answered softly, patting her arm. Then she stood up, facing the tall cylon. She really had to perk her head, and didn't appear intimidating at all, but certainly tried to sound so. "Why are you asking?"

Six's eyes flared.

Sam ignored them and crawled closer to his wife. She was pale, seemed about to pass out again.

"C'mon. Lie back down." He made an attempt to support her, and failed miserably. "Why did you get up anyway?"

"Because he--" Kara gestured to Lee. His blue eyes were misty, but he kept observing them all. She remembered something about husbands and wives, but was too tired to muse over it now.

"I don't know why!" Shelly's scream caught their attention. The blonde towered above Dualla and the smaller woman seemed to have shrunk even more.

Six shot a glance at the other three, and her terrifying posture evaporated.

"Starbuck is the key," she seethed. "The key to the Temple, to our safety, our future. Possibly to the future of both the cylon and mankind. I don't know how, I don't know why. So don't ask me!"

They fell silent.

Sam stared at the cylon for a long while. After seeing so many copies of her back on old Caprica he'd stopped considering her kind beautiful; though at first he'd thought she was the Aphrodite personified. It hit him more and more these days – this woman bore the vibe of the Goddess.

When Six turned away, and the spell broke, his gaze was caught by the green eyes of Dualla. The last two days, when they'd been practically communicating with each other and hardly anybody else, had seen the creation of a strange bond. There were moments when he thought he could read the girl's thoughts and now he saw how frightened she was.

Then her gaze slipped from him down to the woman at his side.

He turned there, too.

Kara's eyes shot to Six, to Dee, to Sam and back to Six.

"Me?" she squeaked. "The key?"

"Okay!" Dee composed herself at the sight of this and took charge again. "So she's the key. Fine. But right now she's going to get some sleep, or else we'll have no key at all. You and I are going back to staring at that ancient writing on the wall, and Sam is going to look after Kara. Starbuck, do you need morpha? No? Then get back to business everyone."

She marched toward the column purposefully, and Six followed her with an amused shrug. Sam leaned over confounded Kara, and helped her wrap herself in the blanket. She wanted to ask what was going on, but felt so tired, she fell asleep before she even knew it.

And Lee thought how completely useless he'd become, if even his wife didn't spare a look at him or a word to instruct him what to do.

---

Kara woke up several hours later. She was feeling much stronger, and she had a dream.

"Holy frak!" she jumped up, ignoring Sam's concerned "What?" Felt dizzy, staggered, but regained her balance. Sam's helping hand was of considerable importance there. But then she forgot all about him and nearly run to where Dee and Shelly were arguing about something fiercely.

Sam cursed under his breath. He observed the twosome for a while, curious what made them so outraged. He even wanted to go there, but once he tried to stand up, his leg hurt so much, walking anywhere was out of the question. So far he was pissed off with the fact that he couldn't move – thought even if he could, there wasn't anywhere to go in the cramped space of the Temple's hall. But now the pain piled up on his earlier frustration. The shots were no longer an option. And if within the next day or two they didn't figure out that power, pitch, yaw, and roll . . . They were frakked way beyond simple hurting.

And even though Sam was not into the ship's mechanics – Dee seemed to be the one to have some ideas, along with the Major while he was alert enough to share his thoughts – sitting on his ass was simply against the man's nature.

He envied Kara now more than he was concerned for her. Damn, just a few hours ago, she was out cold, and now she stood in front of the other two women, gesticulating wildly. Sam would give just about anything to hear what she was saying.

Not that he would make much sense of it.

"Slow down, Kara." Dee lay her hand on the taller woman's arm, steadying her. "What egg? What apple?"

"The egg. The seed of the fruit of life," Kara tried again. "The symbol--It's Apollo!"

"What symbol? What does Apollo have to do with it?"

"Wait a minute!" Six interrupted. "You mean that round symbol?" Concentrated on deciphering the writing, they all forgot about the most evident figure in the room. "It's the symbol of Apollo?"

"But it's the Eye of Jupiter!" Dee objected. "Not Apollo's."

"Jupiter is another name of Zeus, the father of Apollo, this might be connected," Six picked up Starbuck's train of thought. Approached the symbol and stared at it. "It's so obvious! This is the sun, sun rays, see? The sun is Apollo! Apollo is the god of sun."

"Yeah, what does it change?" asked Dee.

They both looked at Kara expectantly.

"I have no idea," she whispered.

Dee sighed impatiently, but Kara kept staring at the circles in circles in circles. They meant something. The egg, the seed . . . She had a dream about Apollo, the protector of life.

Six put her finger on the sun rays, and looked at Kara. "We're here," she whispered.

"And we need to get here," Kara replied in a whisper too, and put her finger in the center of the symbol, on it's golden heart.

At the pressure the smallest circle plunged into the stone. The whole Temple trembled, a rumbling noise was heard from beneath the ground. The darkness was briefly lit by a flash of energy from the crystals atop the column, and the four taller pillars surrounding the column sunk into the ground with a loud scrape, brought into line with the smallest one.

Dee and Six looked around with shock.

Kara looked around too, when another disconcerting noise was heard.

Both Dee and Six turned to her with alarm.

"What was that?"

"I think I'm hungry," Kara replied slowly, with embarrassment.

---  
t.b.c.


	8. Chapter 8

DISCLAIMER: Not mine, no profit - other than A FEW WORDS FROM DEAR READERS, PLEASE - gained.

Sorry for the delay. The flu season caught up with me. Hope you still remember what this story is about.

---  
THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT  
Chapter Eight  
---

Previously: _"And we need to get here," Kara replied in a whisper, and put her finger in the center of the symbol, on it's golden heart. _

At the pressure the smallest circle plunged into the stone. The whole Temple trembled, a rumbling noise was heard from beneath the ground. The darkness was briefly lit by a flash of energy from the crystals atop the column, and the four taller pillars surrounding the column sunk into the ground with a loud scrape, brought into line with the smallest one.

Dee and Six looked around with shock. Kara looked around too, when another disconcerting noise was heard. Both Dee and Six turned to her with alarm.

"What was that?"

"I think I'm hungry," Kara replied slowly, with embarrassment.

---

Luckily Sam was already preparing a "dinner". Dee explained the set-up of their little camp to Kara, and left the pilot with her husband, returning to the cylon. For a moment she fought the urge to sit by Lee's side, hold his hand, and stay there, watching him sleep. Listening to his breath, like Shelly had said earlier.

But they were running out of time, and they may have gotten onto something that might help them find the way out of this hideous situation, so she had to do her job first.

"Here." The cylon pointed to a group of three symbols, as Dee neared her. "Abol."

"Abol?"

"Could be. The ancient version of "an apple". Or . . . If we take this cut at the end as something else than a result of the passing time, like Sam suggested . . . Might be Abolo. Or Apolo."

"You think Kara's dream means something?"

Six shrugged. She didn't have to reveal all her thoughts, especially if they were nothing more than vague ideas. The secret of Kara Thrace was beneath the surface, but she couldn't yet grasp it. While the secret of Apollo was far away enough to let the humans dwell on it for a while.

"It's usually assumed that Apollo's name is derived from the core apollynai – destroyer, destruction. But maybe those who were deciphering the Scriptures were wrong." She walked around the column, searching for another similar symbols. Started marking them out. Dee was about to join her, when Sam called them off for dinner. The cylon didn't even react, stayed with her writings. She didn't need food.

Nearing the twosome, Dee heard them argue in subdued tones. Finally Kara let out an exasperated, "Okay, I believe." Sam's gaze dropped to the pot and boiling green mass, his jaw tight. He was so irritable lately, Dee had to remember to watch her tongue all the time; obviously Kara was learning it the hard way, too.

"It's disgusting," she commented, having tried the algae dinner.

"But satiating," Dee responded, sitting between the two of them. "And it's all we've got." If she was to serve as a buffer, so be it. It was hardly the worse thing that could happen to her.

"I know," Kara fumed. "Sam briefed me in," she added in a meaningful tone, looking at Dee with hostility.

The younger woman sighed, starting to eat her share of algae. But Kara was far from finished.

"It would be much easier for him if you bothered to tell him that I lost my memory!"

"Like it bite you the most!" Sam interrupted angrily.

"I'm only speaking in your defense!"

"Maybe I don't need an attorney!"

"Gods, why am I even trying to be friendly?" Kara threw her hands, and put her cup aside, getting up.

"This is 'friendly' by your standards?" Sam yelled louder.

"If we're married, I guess you should know!" she spat, turned around and walked away, not letting him respond.

"Frak!" Sam threw the spoon he used to stir the goo across the hall. It clattered loudly on the stony floor.

Dee sighed. So much for the buffer. She got up and went for the spoon. Returned and met Sam's hateful stare; he hated his disability and hated being reminded of it. But suddenly his face softened, eyes darted toward Lee, lying a few steps to the side fast asleep. Even from the distance they could hear his unsteady breathing.

"She asked me about him," Sam's voice was barely above a whisper. "I said--I don't even remember, something about a husband, and she asked about him."

Dee gasped, and Sam looked up at her.

"Yeah. You see now why I was mad?" He sighed deeply, looking over at the unconscious man again. "He's bad. I don't know if he's going to make it."

That was enough for Dualla. All jealousy forgotten, she found herself at her husband's side in a blink of an eye. He did look terribly, was white as a sheet, his lips were chapped and had unsettling bluish tint. Dark circles around his eyes made her heart ache. Dee brushed his face, and as her fingers touched him, she felt something was wrong. She pressed her palm to his temple, his forehead.

"Oh my gods," she breathed out. "He's burning!"

She looked over at Sam, but the man seemed as shocked as she was.

"I was talking to him a moment ago. He wasn't fine, but there was no sign of fever." He struggled to crawl nearer, clearly disturbed.

Dee got up hastily and jumped to the med-kit. Started throwing things out left and right.

"We've had antibiotics here somewhere," she murmured.

"I'm not sure it's wise, Dee. If there isn't enough, or they are not strong enough, it might do more damage than good. We don't really know why he's like this."

Lieutenant Dualla felt her strength draining away. The thought about saving the man she loved was what kept her going. If she lost that purpose, she wasn't sure she'd find another reason to put on a brave face.

---

Kara was angrier that she first assumed. Apparently she didn't even know herself all that good. Which could be understandable, given that she knew nothing about herself. At least now some things were explained, but she had a feeling her husband, Sam Anders, didn't know her too well either. How did she figure out that this other man, Lee Adama, was her husband, she had no idea, but it surely pissed off Sam.

If she wasn't so lost, she would laugh at all this.

Not even knowing how and why, Kara found herself in front of the column once more, right before the circular sign. The tall blonde--the cylon, the enemy, Sam had said--came from around the obelisk.

"You want to touch it?" she asked, nodding at the mandala.

"Not really." Kara stepped away. Looked behind herself, at one of the pillars, the one that had been the lowest, before the rest of them plunged into the ground. Right behind that pillar there was a path, and an ellipse with another symbol of the mandala.

Kara took a few steps in that direction, but stopped beside the pillar. Six joined her, and together they were staring at the figure.

"I wanted to ask you--" the cylon hesitated for a bit. "What Colony are you from?"

"All and none," Kara chuckled. "I was born on Libria if that's what you mean."

"Libron."

"Yeah, Libron."

"What about Geminon? Were you ever there?"

"No. Gemenon is the only Colony my mother was never sent to. That and Libron actually. I was born there, but we left when I was very small and never returned. Those were the only two Colonies I've never seen, others--" now Kara hesitated, furrowed her brow, scratched her head.

"I thought you lost your memory?" the cylon asked ironically.

"Yeah. I can't remember other worlds. In fact the more I think about it--" There was something wrong. With her head, and with the world. It was spinning again.

Kara reached out for support and touched the slanted surface of the pentagonal pillar. As her palm met the stone, she felt slight electrical shock, and the floor of the Temple shuddered lightly. She looked around, frightened, withdrew her hand, and when she gazed at the pillar again, she realized it was rising from the floor. Other pillars remained still, but this one came up, revealing an empty space inside it's pentagonal area.

Kara looked in there, then at Six, then inside again; her dizziness gone and forgotten. The pillar halted, the floor of the void was level with one of the Temple. Like it was waiting. Kara took a step inside, but felt the other woman's palm on her arm.

"Are you sure?"

"Well--I don't see why not?"

---

Neither Dee, nor Sam noticed the trembling this time. The girl simply broke into tears, and even if Sam felt any shudder, he assumed it was the body pressed against his chest. He kept stroking her tangled hair, hushing and shushing, and shooting glances at the woman's husband. When he'd said Lee might not make it, he thought more about the man's mental state; it seemed that the soldier lost the will to fight. But now, with the fever, and rabid cough, the threat was more of the physical nature.

Finally Dee started calming down, and pushed away from Sam's embrace.

"What are we going to do?" she asked shakily.

Before Sam found words, they heard Kara's excited voice. "You're not going to believe it!"

They looked up to see her smiling triumphantly, and Six right behind her, rather amused.

"You're not going to believe what we've found!"

---  
t.b.c.


	9. Chapter 9

DISCLAIMER: Not mine, no profit - other than A FEW WORDS FROM DEAR READERS, PLEASE - gained.

A/N: I wrote this a while ago, as a PWP piece that was to serve the Adama!Angst purpose only. But now the situation back home seems to intrude itself into the main plot of the story. Where am I going???

---

THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT

Chapter Nine

---

It's been over forty eight hours since the _Galactica _left the Algae planet system. Admiral's presence was required during the analysis of the findings from the planet's surface. He had to change all the security codes and protocols that were known to Athena, who re-joined the cylons. He needed to supervise the damage report, even if he could leave it to his XO under certain circumstances. He needed to debrief his crew. Well, he should have known the document that now lay in front of him for that, but somehow managed to skip it. He needed to plan the course of next actions with the President, even if she'd said they might do it later. He needed . . .

Well, there was only one thing he needed to do. Take cognizance of the list of casualties. But he stared at the document on his desk and the letters somehow didn't want to form into words.

The Admiral pushed the paper away, took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Maybe he should get some sleep first?

As if on cue someone knocked at the hatch then.

"Enter!"

"Bill?" Tigh's bald head peeked through the opening. "Not sleeping yet?"

The XO walked toward his commander's--and friend's--desk, and stopped right there, scrutinizing Bill.

"I was just going to."

Saul didn't say anything, picked up the casualties list, glanced it over and nodded. "We lost many good men there."

"Not as many as after New Caprica," Bill responded harshly, looking away.

Tigh's one eyebrow jumped all the way to the top of his head. "Do you even know what you're saying?"

"I'm tired. Haven slept in a few days. I think we'll put off sweeping through the crew manifesto until the morning."

The Admiral stood up, his face hardened like the battlestar's shielding. He was dismissing his XO, and he trusted his friend would not poke his head up at this moment.

But Saul Tigh shrugged, sat down, and put the list back on the desk, in front of Bill, with a mockery of a smile on his lips.

"Put off, huh?" he murmured. "That's what you've been doing these past couple of days. Well, if you want it that way . . ." He blew his lips, deep in thought, staring at his hands. "Crew manifesto . . . We need a new CAG, Helo can't be the filler any longer. Along with CAG we lost the lead pilot." Bill sat down, and Saul shot him a glance. The Old Man's arms slumped, his face shrunk. He was dumbly gaping at the document on his desk. The XO took a breath and continued. "The CIC personnel can fill in the gap after Lt. Dualla for a while, but with the pilots--we must assign them now. The obvious choice is Narcho, he's the squad leader--"

"Stop it."

Tigh fell silent. Watched his commander and best friend and felt his pain.

"I wish--" Bill's whisper was barely audible. Saul didn't move. Waited. "I wish I could resign."

"But you can't."

None of them moved, none said anything for another eternally long moment.

Bill Adama felt he could go on only as long as he didn't acknowledge the full extent of what happened.

"Chose CAG," he grated. Got up and took the two steps to his rack. Sat down. "Good night," said without looking at his visitor.

And Saul, sterling Saul, took his cue, sighed, and left.

---

Bill Adama had once presented President Roslin with a document like the one he was staring at right now. Except that he had trouble filling the last line now. I recommend . . . Whom? . . . As the Commander of the Fleet. Whom?

He stared at the paper and his thoughts were blank.

He heard a knock on the door.

"Enter," he said.

Didn't look up, but the sound of her steps was recognizable enough.

"Bill?" she asked. "You didn't attend the ceremony." There was concern in her voice, worry for him.

He didn't need that.

"It's over already?"

"Yes. Colonel Tigh did the honors." She sat, but he refused to look up at her. She continued in a soft voice. "There was no delay, no stir. He really outdid himself there."

"I'm going to have to thank him," Bill commented dryly.

"How are you holding up?"

He hesitated. She was getting straight to the point, and perhaps that was what he should do too?

"I was going to--" he choke. Somehow it was even harder to say the words, than think them. "But I have a problem," tried another approach, "with the replacement. It's stupid really. I don't know, maybe you'll find it easier, maybe with some advice . . ."

"What are you talking about?" She noticed the document he was staring at, held out her hand and took it. He let her. "What is it?" Her eyes scanned the text. "What is it? You're not serious." She took off her glasses and looked at him, her eyes piercing right through his tormented heart. She saw his pain and her face softened. "Bill. I know how you feel."

"Do you?"

"No," she agreed. "I don't. But--"

"You can't know that. Not until you really experience--" His grief choke him again. "I didn't know," he sobbed. And then, suddenly, the words started flowing from him like a water that breaks the dam. "I thought I did, but I didn't, I had no idea. Remember what you asked me?" He looked up, and saw how she looked back then: frightened, wary. It had only been a few days ago! "'Are you prepared to sacrifice Lee?' you asked." She rememberred. "I thought I was. Gods, I lost him so many times, I thought I knew how I'd feel. But that was that: so many times. I never lost him for real not until now." The tears flooded his face. He'd never cried before, not even back then, when he'd had another reason, just like this, to cry. "When I thought he was gone, I kept going, but at the end of the day he was always back one way or another. I keep expecting him to be back now, too. But he's not coming back. He's not coming back," he sobbed. Wiped the tears, but new ones came right away. "I never imagined I would feel like this," added in a whisper. That was true, even back then--after Zak's death, his younger son—it had all been different. The world had been different. "I thought I'd grieve, and keep going, because that's my duty. Because I'm an Admiral. But no. My Lee is gone. And with him my purpose. All my purpose."

"Bill--"

"All my life."

Laura looked at him and waited. Gave him the time to gather his wits about him, was the most understanding.

He counted on it, actually. "That's why you will accept it this time." He pointed at his resignation.

Laura's eyes opened wide.

"And you will do what?" she asked in accusatory tone. "Just give up, rot away on some civilian ship? Do you think that's what he would have wanted?"

"This isn't about him."

"Isn't it? Who is it about then? You?"

He shot her a glare, but that was Laura Roslin and she could take him up on the glare contest on most days of the week.

"It should be about him," she picked up, softly again. "You owe him that much. And for him you should keep fighting." Laura kept pressing, and seeing him stubbornly shake his head, she tried a different tactic. "Imagine him coming back. What if his raptor had jumped away? You don't know that for sure, do you? What if he comes back eventually and sees his father has given up, abandoned his post. Do you really want that?"

Bill stared at her blankly. Totally missed the later part of her elaborate.

"You think they may have jumped away?" he asked hoarsely.

Laura swallowed. She was sure Bill considered this possibility somewhere along the way, but apparently not.

"Then we hurried with this funeral ceremony!" he rose suddenly. "Maybe he--"

"Bill. If he's alive, he'll have to find _us_--"

"We have to go back! I promised him--" his voice faltered, tears threatened to flow again. "--I'd never leave."

"He knows where we are going," she assured, surprising even herself with that hope that it was--by some miracle--true. "If he's alive, he'd have to find us, we can't search for him. Meanwhile just do your job, and stop whining, okay."

She was fully aware how thin her argumentation was, but Bill so desperately needed a purpose, he clung to this belief that Lee was still alive, like it was his lifeboat. And the President started worrying how long the Fleet would survive, if it was led by a man, who lived in an imaginary world.

---  
.tbc


	10. Chapter 10

---  
THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT  
Chapter Ten  
---

"You're not going to believe what we've found!" Kara and Six tried to out-shout each other

Dualla looked up frantically. It'd better be good! I'd better be something that would save Lee.

"Come," Kara smiled and extended her hand, helping Dee stand up, Six offered her assistance to Sam, but he refused.

"I'll wait. He shouldn't be left alone." Pointed at the Major.

Kara's quick stolen glance did not escape unnoticed. And Sam was sure he'd seen concern there. Was she lying about the extent of her amnesia? Did she somehow remember _him_, and their affair? Sam wished he could still hate the Major, but somehow his compassion prevailed over resentment.

He watched the three women walk away and cursed his bad luck. He was damn curious what made Kara and Six so elated, and his jaw nearly dropped to the floor, when he saw one of the pillars rise from the ground, the girls enter it, and the pillar sink back.

---

"What are you doing?" Dee shrieked. She wanted to escape, she had the worst suspicions, when the two blondes forced her inside the pillar, into a tight pentagonal area in which the three of them could barely fit. Kara and Six were both smiling, almost laughing, and Dee was sure there were predatory sparks in their eyes.

Before she managed to scream however, some kind of door started rising, cutting her off the spacious hall, Sam and Lee. He breath caught from panic. Then, as soon as the two missing walls of the pentagonal cage were the full height, there appeared a slit right above the floor, that grew rapidly, and Dee realized finally it was them, inside the small box, that were lowering. Soon the lift stopped, and Kara stepped out.

"Voila!" she extended her arms, showing the corridor they now found themselves in. Dee looked around in awe. Everything was lit by dim yellowish lamps located in the ceiling. The wide walkway, of a low ceiling, encompassed a central wall, that must have been supporting the tall column in the center of the room above. There were writings, similar as above, all around the middle of the rotunda. And when Dee stepped out from the lift, and looked behind it, she saw a tight corridor, that led further into the accommodation.

"Let me show you around!" Kara exclaimed.

"And I'll help those two get down here," Six added, pointing at the ceiling.

Dee sighed, shook her head skeptically, and followed ecstatic Kara.

"I can't believe you haven't found it earlier!" Starbuck sneered. "You were sitting on a starship and never thought there had to be some control center."

"We did think that," Dee replied, offended. The pilot's arrogance was starting to irk her. "We just couldn't find it!"

"You're lucky to have me here," Kara smirked, but before Dee found a reply, the pilot stopped abruptly in an entrance to a wider area. The younger officer was focused on her colleague, so the first thing she noticed was how transfixed, and haunted Kara's eyes became. Only then she took the time to look around.

---

When Six came back up, Sam was already limping toward the lift. He hesitated when the cylon gestured for him to enter, shot a glance at the Major's still form, but she promised to be right back for the ill man, and the fighter could not resist his curiosity any more.

"I won't tell you," Six deflected his demands of explanation. "You wouldn't believe anyway. You have to see it."

Indeed, Sam would not believe if he didn't see it.

When they got off the lift, he looked around equally dumbfounded as Dualla had been before him. "Is that?--" He looked at the tall blonde next to him; she was smiling genuinely.

"The control center." Six nodded, guessing his thoughts. She pointed at the corridor behind the lift. "It's there exactly, but right now I'd rather take you to the lower level."

Sam put up a hand to stop her. "What's on the lower level. I _will_ believe you!"

The cylon grinned. "Something we might consider bunk rooms. With kitchen, bathroom, beds."

"You want to put me to bed?"

"No. But I think you shouldn't strain--"

"Let me decide about what I should and what I shouldn't," Sam smirked. He could do a happy dance now! "I want to see the command center."

Six shook her head at this, but consented and led him down the small corridor.

---

The area was elliptic. Or ellipsoidal even; the floor and ceiling weren't flat either. There was no corner in the room, even the flickering screens, filling the wall opposite from the entrance; few buttons on the flat, slanted surface below the monitors; the surface itself, were round, oval, elliptic. The only straight lines and figures--pentagons mostly--were displayed on the screens and were constantly changing, moving, evolving. It made Dualla dizzy.

Kara stood next to her, staring at the monitors, breathing fast. Dee could say her colleague was excited, and frankly, she was pretty elated too, though she was not believing her own eyes yet. She stepped closer, and tried to comprehend the symbols on the screens. These must have been all kinds of control panels. There must have been some communication system, too. This was something she was familiar with, if she only could--

"What do you think this all means?" Dee turned to Kara, and gasped.

The other woman's face was deathly white and it was hard to tell if it was from the weird light that illuminated the room, or from emotions. Her lips were trembling, moving slightly as if she wanted to say something, but couldn't make out words.

"Starbuck?"

"I--uh--this--here--" she tried to choke out. Shook her head, and simply crossed the distance between herself and the flat surface in two long, determined strides. "I know what it is." She touched the surface and wild swirls of colors danced upon it. "I can't name it, but I know." Moved her fingers, and swirling colors changed pattern. The evolving lines, triangles and pentagons on screens also started moving. It was all in chaos, but Dee felt instinctively that there was method in this madness.

They heard voices, and Kara quickly withdrew her palms, looked behind. Sam limped in, leaning on his hand-made crutches, the cylon hovering behind him.

"Whoa!" he gasped.

Six looked at Dee and Kara, and for a moment regret flashed in her eyes. She blinked and stubborn superiority returned. "I'll be back as soon as I get the Major down." Turned and strode away.

"Down?" Dee asked, suddenly frightened, worried for her husband.

"Living area," Kara explained without much ado and returned to the monitors.

"What are you doing?" Sam gasped, seeing the dance of colors and lines.

"What do you think? I'm piloting this thing. I'm a pilot, am I not?"

"How?"

"Wish I knew--"

Sam and Dee stood on either side of a focused Starbuck and shared worried glances.

"Do you at least know where you are going?" tried Sam.

"No idea."

"So maybe you know where the communication device is?" tried Dee, as this question kept nagging her. "There must be some, right?"

"Over there." Kara pointed to the few switches next to Dualla's left arm.

"Seriously?"

"I'm not sure you'll be able to use them though. But you might try."

Dee tried. Damn, she would use it! Even if Starbuck thought she would not be able to, she would use this thing somehow!

The monitor in front of her started displaying data she could not understand. But she could, she probably could contact the Galactica. If she only knew how! If Kara could instinctively pilot this ship, then why wouldn't the comms officer be able to understand how it communicated?

"Kara," she suddenly heard Sam's deeply concerned voice. "What is this thing?"

Near the border of one of the monitors appeared an arc, described with tiny symbols, similar to those on Dee's screen, and--she realized now--the same as writings on the column above. The arc soon changed into a half-circle, and then into the full circle that flashed and started pulsating, the many writings all around it changing constantly, disappearing and moving.

"Maybe we should stop?" inquired Sam, but Kara only shook her head.

---  
t.b.c


	11. Chapter 11

---  
THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT  
Chapter Eleven  
---

Six felt uneasy. Leaving the humans in the control center was careless at best. What if they found the way to operate the ship? It was unlikely, they didn't have her cylon intelectual abilities, but they had Starbuck. And Starbuck was the great unknown. Six still wasn't sure about the pilot's role, but she was starting to get a clue. Kara Thrace had never been on Gemenon. She'd been born on Libron, but had never returned there. There was some mystery surrounding Kara Thrace, her father and her mother. And the cylon was one step away from solving it.

It would be wiser to stay with Thrace, observe her. Yet Six was standing inside the alien lift, going up to the ill Major. If she abandoned him, neglected her promise, he might die. If he died, there was no way of telling what would happen. There were the five of them, and this was the Temple of Five. Whatever the connection was, Six saw the hand of God in it. And she wouldn't dare oppose Him, even for a reason to watch the Chosen One's every step.

Because it was becoming more and more obvious to Six that Kara Thrace was the Chosen One.

The lift stopped and the cylon walked out. Her high heels hitting the floor, she neared the still form on the floor, looked at the man's pale face, chest moving up and down in each strained breath.

"Major Adama," she called, kneeling down and reaching for his arm. "Apollo."

What was his connection to Apollo, the god?

At first he wouldn't wake up. Six shook him several times and when he did not respond, feeling her throat constrict, she checked for his pulse. Ridiculous! He was breathing so loud she didn't need to worry that he'd died already! Loud an irregularely. Then his eyes cracked open, eyelids fluttered, and immediatelly shut tight as he struggled to stiffle the cough that threatened him.

The cylon squeezed his arm lightly, and whispered, "You'll get better soon." There was no way of knowing if that promise would come true, but she sounded convincing. Hope flickered in the ill man's eyes, and Six experienced compassion. Sincere compassion, she realized. She really cared. "You have to rise now," she whispered softly. "I'll help you get below, there's real ship there, command with all that pitch, trigger and stuff. And computers. And sleeping quarters. Food and water. Maybe medications," she kept talking softly, but stopped when realized Lee was drifting away again. "Wake up." She shook him, and he focused on her. "We have to move."

He was warm, hot even. When she moved him, helping him up, his breathing grew even more irregular, and before he managed to sit up, he started coughing. She held him fast, and kept stroking his back, until the fit subsided.

"I'll carry you," she offered, but he started then, shook his head stiffly. They were ambitious those human men.

Slowly they managed to stand, though he swayed. Then step-by step they walked to the center of the room. Looking at the column and the pillars Six rememberred she'd wanted to do it fast. Quickly return to Kara Thrace. Was there any way to do it faster?

"Where--?" One word spoken in a harsh voice recalled her.

She guessed what he wanted to know. "Below," she replied with a sigh. "Those pillars are some kind of lifts." She paused, seeing his frown. "Everyone else is down there already. You'll rest there."

He stopped before the pillar. Just like the others, wasn't willing to enter the cramped space – the cylon assumed. The alien technology seemed surreal, Six suddenly felt weirded out too, and she guessed that through feverish haze it all must look much more scary.

But shooting Lee a glance she learned he wasn't looking at the inside of the lift. His head bowed, he was struggling to draw in a breath. When he finally managed, it was followed by another couging fit, that wrecked his whole body. Six couldn't even hold him up, fell to her knees, all the time protecting the falling body from hitting the ground.

When he started breathing again, each tortured gasp sending deep rumbles through his chest, he wasn't conscious any more. She gently lifted him, and his head rolled and rested limply on her shoulder. Carrying him she entered the lift and it moved down immediatelly. On the lower level she walked to one of the other four pilars, and it transported them one more level down.

It looked similarly to the one above, with a central rotunda encompassed by writings and punctuated with symbols of mandala. But in the other wall, opposite to the mandalas, next to the pillars standing a few feet aside from the wall, there were openings, each leading into a single living quarter. There were six pillars, six openings, and six spaces, the last one -- right below the control room -- being the head and the mess.

The cylon entered one of the quarters and gently put Major Adama in his rack. She was ready to go back to the command center, intended to send someone else here to take care of the injured man, when she thought better of it. He required more than simple holding his hand and watching over his breathing. For starters he needed a bath, and suddenly Six remembered how embarassed the Major was each time she helped him to the head, how he struggled, despite of his weakness, to take care of his needs by himself.

She knew without a doubt, he'd feel humiliated if any of the other three people did the job. Dee, because she was the wife he was supposed to protect and care for, not the other way around. Starbuck because . . . Well, because their relationship was complicated. And Anders was that other man, the stronger, healthier one. Apollo wasn't even willing to accept a glass of water from him as far as Six knew. Her however the Major hated enough, not to be bothered by. She could do it. But would she?

The realization was shocking, and her digital brain had toruble comprehending her own motives. She quickly walked to the head, took a bowl of warm water and a rag. Human physiology -- it was something she'd never dealt with before. Gaius seemed to have no physiology at all, even his apartament was the paradigm of order and neatness, almost like everything in the cylon world. In the inside of his brain, she deliberatelly cut herself off the biological part of his body. Well, except for one aspect of it, but that was different.

Now she looked at the battered, sick, filthy body, and all she felt was compassion, no disgust.

Slowly and carefully she removed his cloths and bandages from his chest. He moaned a few times, but other than that did not respond; didn't even open his eyes. When he was naked, she covered him with a sheet, to prevent him from getting cold, and started gently washing his face and arms.

Then she uncovered his chest, and looked at the marks left by the crash. The bruises on Apollo's chest turned grayish yellow, there was no swelling any more, though the spot was still tender; the man winced when she touched it. At least there were no cuts, so the threat of infection didn't add to the probable pneumonia.

When he was bathed, Six carefully dressed him in plain white attire she found in the locker. Lee coughed harshly and whimpered a few times as she turned him and moved his limbs. She did all she could, and reluctantly rose and left his side. Lost in thought went back to the head area, to put away the water bowl, when she stopped dead in her tracks, watching the mandala oposite from the room entrance.

Its sun rays were slowly revolving.

She dropped the bowl where she stood, and run to the lift. Once on the upper level, she hurried to join the humans in the control center. What had they done while she was busying herself with Lee Adama's needs?

As she run into the room filled with monitors, and controls, she stopped dead once again. All the monitors were showing the same round object, in various sizes, described with various symbols, some of them showing clearly that was where they were headed.

The three humans heard her steps, and turned to her, all of them pale as paper.

"I think this is some star," Kara blurted out. "We're going toward--" She stopped suddenly, went even more pale, green even, turned away, and heaved on the console.

---  
t.b.c. 


	12. Chapter 12

---  
THIS OUGHT TO BE DIFFERENT  
Chapter Twelve  
---

While Sam tried to comfort Starbuck -- which wasn't easy given her stubborn character, and his unsteady stance -- Dualla stared at the cylon, who obviously knew something.

"You tell us right now what's going on!" the petite girl demanded. Her eyes blaring she could have been the size of an ant, and everyone in the room would notice and listen to her right now. She no longer had anything to lose, she no longer cared. If this was going to end, if they were to die, she would at least fight to survive for as long as possible. Finding these rooms under the cold floor of the Temple was a proof enough that there were miracles.

"How am I supposed to know what's going on?" Six tried to deflect the ex-coms officer's anger, but met the wall.

"You obviously are hiding things from us! And you're going to share. Right now!"

"I'm not hiding any facts," the cylon seethed. "I'm only guessing--"

"Then guess!" Dualla yelled. "What is that round object?"

"It looks like some star."

"Are we heading toward a star? Are we going to land on it's planet?"

"I really do not know."

"There aren't any signs resembling planets on those screens," Sam noticed inteligently. Kara, appearing to feel better, leaned closer and watched the screens. She shook her head, commenting his statement without words.

"Where did you get us, Starbuck?" Dee whispered. She was never fond of the cocky pilot, but now, her putting everyone on immediate danger . . . This just made her blood boil.

"Hey, knock it off, Dee," Sam stepped in his female's defense. "What did you do so far?"

It was too much. What he said was damn unfair and both he and her knew that, but he did not intend to apologize. And she did not intend to let it intimidate her. Dualla swallowed her fury for now.

"How do we communicate with the Galactica?" she asked the cylon.

"I don't--"

"Don't," Dee warned "even say that. This is the console. There must be the receiver and the sender. And some way to compose the message. Or at least a way to send some sort of Krypter message. Every communication device has a way to send out an automated request for help."

Dee turned sharply to the console. It had to be something easily distinguishable, something that even non-specialist would be able to find, even if he was hurt and unable to think clearily. Like that orange button, between the monitors.

Without further consideration Dualla pressed the button. The ship moaned and nothing more happened.

But that did not matter. What mattered was if something happened on the Galactica. That was the question they had no answer to, not yet.

---

Laura Roslin waited for the Admiral's reaction to her tirade, but after a minute, when there was no answer, she sighed and turned to the exit, her head bowed. This was going to be more tough than she thought.

Ringing of the wire stopped her a few steps from the hatch. This was not her thing, but she waited, watched as the Admiral picked up the phone. Whether it meant that he was willing to keep his position as a leader of the Fleet, or was it simple automated gesture, she could not guess. But he answered the phone.

"Adama." Listened for a moment his brow furrowing. "I'm on my way," said gruffly, without much emotion in his voice.

Noticed the President standing in his room, noticed her questioning look.

"We received some call. Patterns suggest a distress call, and it has some features of a cylon message, but not quite. We need to decide if we're going to investigate, or get as far away from it as possible. Do you wish to accompany me to the CIC?"

She nodded and followed him out of the hatch, as he buttoned up his uniform.

---

"This better be important Eleven," number Three yelled entering the Control Room.

She had just spent all morning with Number Eight, also known as Sharon Agathon -- as she insisted to be called -- who was getting on her nerves. She and that Caprica Six. How were they able to set themselves apart form others of their model? Three was a Three, whether it was her, or some other Three, they thought the same, wanted the same, and they all had the same name. All of the cylon were like that. Even other Eights and Sixes. But not Sharon Agathon and Caprica.

And now Three had to work with them both on those weird data, they had initially stored away as "rubbish", after that mad Six had downloaded, stolen the raptor and gone to the planet to explode along with it. They had initially thought it had been Caprica, but then Caprica had been caught trying to help Eight . . . Sharon . . . escape with the child. They had been punished, both of them. And they should have remained where they would not interfere with the other cylon.

But Five, who had insisted from the start on investigating the rubbish from Six's download, had finally came onto something only a few days ago. He had been certain that garbage had human traits. He'd finally compared them with the data they had on Baltar and said they matched. They matched exactly. He'd said that what they thought was Caprica, was in fact Baltar. And truth be told it fitted. Three rememberred she had died and downloaded only seconds before that mad Six had. She'd been with Baltar on the planet, came across that Caprica-and-New-Caprica-Resistance fighter, and Major Adama, and they had killed her. They had probably killed Baltar as well.

But that became clear later, when Caprica admitted to having a Baltar inside her head. She had claimed to having talked to him since her download after the initial attacks on the Colonies. She had told them everything about it, and Three had never been so furious before. No cylon had ever hidden so many so important information from the collective! She voted for boxing all her model, but that old, clever, atheistic #$ Eleven convinced others that was too harsh a move. And he'd been right, other Sixes weren't as traitious.

And the fact was that Caprica's experience could greatly help them to resolve the mistery of Baltar's mind-traces mixed with the mad Six's. Another Six different from all the others!

So far they managed to find Baltar's DNA, clone him and grow his clone in the Resurrection Ship. His body was almost ready for a download. They were considerring killing and downloading Caprica as well – splitting her and possible Baltar's consciousness in the process. But she started to object and they didn't yet reach the consensus, when Three was recalled to the control center. Eleven, two Fives and Six were already there, next numbers aproaching quickly.

"Well, what is it?" Three demanded, when she saw the last model Four coming in. He was probably with the Hybrid again, listening to her mumbling. Idiot!

"This might be interesting," Eleven said with a mischeivous smile. "We've just received a message from an uncharted yet territory. And the curious thing about it is – it has elements resembling the ancient language of the Scriptures."

"Do you mean we found Earth?" Three gasped.

---  
t.b.c.

A/N: As a result of lack of reviews I'm sorry to tell those few people who read this story on Fan Fiction Net, that I'm no longer going to post here. It simply does not pay off. This story will however be continued and posted in two other places: one is my LJ site - if you are interested, it's avaliable in my profile page, under the link: "Homepage". If for some reason you can't access LJ, but want to continue reading, write me a PM and I'll direct you to that other site where the story will be posted.

Thanks for reviews.  
Y.


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